Inca Trail to Machu Picchu

Inca Trail 4 day Trek - Services & Prices

VERY IMPORTANT TO BOOK EARLY FOR 2019: Trek permits for the Inca Trail are limited to just 500 persons per day and this includes all support staff such as guides, porters and cooks. Inca Trail trek permits for departures in 2019 are likely to go on sale at the beginning of October, many dates will sell out almost immediately particularly for departures in May, June, July & August 2019. Please try to book before the end of August to avoid disappointment. For more details see our Inca Trail Trek Permit Status page. For a guide when to book see our Frequently Asked questions page.

The Inca Trail to Machu Picchu

The appeal of this particular trek is the stunning combination of Inca ruins, magnificent mountains, exotic vegetation and extraordinary ecological variety. The trail goes over high passes with unforgettable views, through cloud forest, and finally into subtropical vegetation.

Over 250 species of orchid have been counted in the Machu Picchu Historic Sanctuary, as well as numerous rare birds, animals, reptiles, including several species considered to be in danger of extinction. In order to complete the Inca Trail you need to have a reasonable level of fitness, age shouldn't be a barrier. The most important thing is to be well acclimatized to the altitude. The maximum height above sea level along the way is 4200m so we recommend anyone coming from the coast to spend at least 2 days in Cusco before attempting the trek. This period is ideal for visiting the city of Cusco, the nearby ruins of Sacsayhuaman and the beautiful Sacred Valley of the Incas.

*** IT4G Inca Trail 4 day Group Service ***

Our standard 4 day group service trek is the most popular of the Inca Trail treks that we offer. With this service you join one of our groups so you will find yourself trekking with a variety of like-minded people from all over the world. This service is perfect for individuals, couples and small groups of friends.

Inca Trail Prices

November - December 2018: US$650

January - December 2019: US$650* - early booking offer.

The prices INCLUDES the combined Inca Trail trek permit and Machu Picchu entrance fee, bus from Machu Picchu to Aguas Calientes, return on tourist train from Aguas Calientes to Ollantaytambo Expedition Service 84, Bus from Ollantaytambo to Cusco and all local sales taxes (18%). There are no hidden charges in our trek prices. For full details of what's included see below. The price also includes all credit card & PayPal transfer fees within the cost of the trek.

Other trekking companies 2018 prices: SAS US$690, Llama Path US$695, Enigma US$785. You can see that we have made every effort to keep our prices very competitive whilst still providing an excellent service and paying our porters 20% above the legal minimum wage agreed with the Porters unions (one of the best rates of pay for porters on the Inca Trail). Our trekking staff are some of the best paid in Cusco which allows us to attract only the best guides, cooks and porters. Please do not ask us to price-match cheaper companies. We feel that the Inca Trail service that we provide is second to none and other trekking companies can only provide a cheaper price by providing an far inferior service and saving on staff costs, porter welfare and taxes.

Discounts:

US$40* discount on the above prices to students < 25yrs old with a valid International Student Identity Card (ISIC) and to children/youths under the age of 18 years old (scans of your ISIC card or child's passport must be provided at the time of paying the trek deposit in order to qualify for the discount). You must have a physical ISIC card which is valid at the time of the trek, virtual cards are not accepted. International Youth Travel Cards (IYTC) or other forms of student identity are also not acceptable. If claiming a student discount you must bring your ISIC card on the trek and your card must be valid on the date of trek departure. Without a valid ISIC card government authorities will not allow you to start the trek and you will not be entitled to a refund.

* it's possible that the government will stop accepting ISIC cards at any time, in which case the student discount will be withdrawn and clients will have to pay the difference upon arrival. We are still waiting on government clarification on this issue.

We offer a US$10 per person discount for group bookings of 4 persons or more, provided just one person in the group is responsible for making the booking and sending the trek deposit. Unfortunately we do not offer travel agent discounts or commissions, our prices are already as low as we can make them.

Trek Permits & Campsites:

The government has strictly limited the number of people permitted on the Inca Trail (permits are issued to about 175 trekkers per day plus 325 porters & guides). We recommend that you make a trek booking as early as possible. In 2018 trek permits for some dates sold out more than 7 months in advance !! However don't make a booking until you have all the group details (names, passport numbers, ages etc) and you are sure about your trek departure date since these details cannot be changed after we have bought your trek permit.

In 2017 we managed to obtain trek permits for ALL of our clients and were lucky to obtain the campsite Wiñay Wayna on the 3rd night of the trek (the campsite nearest to Machu Picchu) for ALL groups. Camping at Wiñay Wayna allows you to arrive at Machu Picchu for sunrise.

In 2018/19 the government has decided not to allocate the campsites at the time of buying the trek permits as it has done in previous years. At the moment the campsites will be allocated just a few days before trek departure and the campsite Winay Wayna will be allocated to the largest sized groups rather than on a first come first served basis. This means it is possible that some of our groups may have to camp at Phuyuptamarca on the 3rd night of the trek (arriving at Machu Picchu for around 10am). So far in 2018 we have obtained Winay Wayna campsite 95% of the time but it's early days yet and we'll have a better idea of allocation during the peak months of May-August.

Important Note: We will buy your Inca Trail trek permit using the names & passport numbers that you send us with your trek booking application. You must bring these same passports with you to Cusco and take them on the Inca Trail. If the name or number in your passport is different from the name and number on the trek permit, the government authorities will not allow you to start the trek and you will not be entitled to a refund. If you plan to renew your passport between making the trek booking and actually starting the trek please visit our web page Frequently Asked Questions relating to passport numbers. If you make a trek booking at the student price you must send us a copy of your ISIC card at the time you pay the trek deposit. If you fail to bring your ISIC card on the trek the government authorities will not allow you to start the trek. You will not be given the opportunity to pay the extra difference in price.

Group Size: Typical group size 08-12 persons, Maximum 16 persons

(minimum group size just 4 persons, for more info see our frequently asked questions section)

Bus from Machu Picchu ruins down to the village of Aguas Calientes US$12 (many companies don't include this)

Tourist train from Aguas Calientes to Ollantaytambo (Peru Rail Expedition service 84 or similar US$70). Prices for 2019 yet to be announced.

Private bus from Ollantaytambo to Cusco.

The price of the trek includes all local sales taxes.

Excludes:

Breakfast on the first morning. Some hotels offer an early morning breakfast service. If not, we stop near the town of Urubamba on the way to the start of the trek where you'll have the opportunity to buy breakfast, Meal (lunch) in restaurant in Aguas Calientes on the final day. Entrance to the thermal springs in Aguas Calientes (optional) US$6, Sleeping bags can be hired in our office for the 4 day trek (every sleeping bag is washed prior to each use), Tips for the guide, cook and porters. The optional night in Aguas Calientes, along with the associated accommodation, meals, entrance fees, bus tickets etc are not included. This can be arranged easily, independently (We can change the date of your train ticket, if you advise us before paying the deposit). Entrance fee to climb Huayna Picchu (optional) - Huayna Picchu is the tall mountain behind Machu Picchu - entrance tickets to Huayna Picchu should be purchased well in advance online. See our frequently asked questions page for further details.

Trek Options:

1. Personal porters can be hired to help carry your personal items such as clothes, sleeping bag etc. The services of a half porter (maximum 6kg or 13lb per person) can be hired for US$85 (2018 & 2019). If you hire the services of a half porter we will provide you with a lockable porter bag to safeguard your equipment (you will need to supply the small padlock). However, even with this service you will still need to take a day-pack to carry your essential items such as rain poncho, warm fleece, camera and water bottle. Please note that due to new government regulations the maximum number of porters that we can use in each group has now been capped. This is why we have had to limit the maximum amount of personal equipment that you can give to a porter to carry for you to 6kg or 13lb per person. (The maximum amount that each porter can carry on the Inca Trail has also been limited to 18kg or 40lb per porter, i.e. 12kg of items for tourists and 6kg for their own equipment). Approximately 40% of our clients hire the services of an extra half porter. This service needs to be requested at the time of making the original trek booking. Porters cannot be added at a later date or during the trek itself as trek permits also have to be bought well in advance for our porters.

2. An extra night in Aguas Calientes can easily be arranged independently. Hotels costs and costs associated with returning to Machu Picchu the following day are additional to trek costs. For more information see our frequently asked questions. Please note that if you spend an extra night in Aguas Calientes we will purchase your train tickets from Aguas Calientes to Ollantaytambo, for the following day. Obviously we won't be able to send a bus especially to collect you from Ollantaytambo so you will have to catch one of the many buses waiting for the train to take you back to Cusco (approx additional cost of these buses is US$5pp). You will not receive a refund for the unused bus ride back to Cusco on the 4th day of the trek.

3. We can also provide vegetarian meals or cater for special diets at no extra cost but we need to know when you make the trek reservation.

4. You can hire sleeping bags in our office. All sleeping bags are synthetic (easy to wash). They are washed after every use and are guaranteed to be clean. After we have hired out our standard sleeping bags just 15 times, we donate it to a porter to use. We have now issued sleeping bags free of charge to all of our porters (over a 230 in total) although they are constantly being replaced as they become old and worn out.

Cost: US$25 per person for the 4 day/3 night trek. Weight 2.5 kg and are rated to 10 degrees below freezing (nice and warm even during the coldest of nights experienced on the Inca Trail).

The price paid for the entrance fee is clearly marked on the trek permit. This price includes entrance to Machu Picchu. The government reserves the right to increase the entrance fee at any time throughout the year and may only give us one or two weeks notice. Inca Trail trek permit prices for 2019 are likely to be announced just before they go on sale in October.

2: Included in the price of the trek is the one-way journey on the train from Aguas Calientes to Ollantaytambo on the Peru Rail Expedition service or similar which currently costs US$70. Details of service and price can be checked on the Peru Rail website www.perurail.com. The ticket prices for 2019 have yet to be announced. The Peru Rail website states that they reserve the right to change the price at anytime. There is also the possibility that Peru Rail will no longer sell a one-way ticket and will only sell return tickets i.e. Ollantaytambo - Aguas Calientes - Ollantaytambo. If this is the case it is possible that the price of the ticket could double!! However this is unlikely. We will try to do everything in our control to keep the price of the ticket to as low as possible but clients must be prepared for such increases in the price of the train ticket. Peru Rail currently runs a monopoly service so we don't have an alternative. The price paid for the train ticket is marked on the ticket.

3. Included in the price of the trek is the bus ticket from Machu Picchu to Aguas Calientes which currently costs US$12 per person. It is not anticipated that these costs will increase during 2018. The price paid for the bus ticket is clearly marked on the ticket. Prices for 2019 have yet to be announced.

4. Local sales taxes known as IGV are included in the price of the Inca Trail trek. The currently rate of IGV is 18%. It is not anticipated that this rate will increase during 2019.

If any of the third party costs listed above change to increase the cost of the trek we will immediately update the trek price listed on our website (apart from the exchange rate which can continue to go up and down throughout the year so the website will not be updated to reflect these cost changes - see Trek Terms & Conditions for more details about change in exchange rate). Clients will be liable for paying any increased cost of the Inca Trail trek upon arrival in Cusco.

Due to the new Inca Trail regulations that limit the number of trekkers on the Inca Trail it should be noted demand for spaces on the trek far outweigh the number of available trek permits. Unlike many trekking companies Peru Treks have not taken advantage of this situation and in real terms we have not increased the price of our treks during the last 3 years. We feel that the service provided by Peru Treks is second to none, and the price that we offer is very competitive and offers great value for money.

Making a Trek Booking:

Prior to making a reservation with Peru Treks it is important to read through our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ). This will help answer any queries that you may have about our services or about the Inca Trail in general. In order to make a booking with our 4 day Inca Trail group service just click on the Reservations link below. The reservations page contains information about how to make a booking, as well as details of how to pay your trek deposit of US$350 and final balance when you arrive in Cusco. It should be noted that the final balance needs to be paid in Cusco at least 2 days before trek departure.